Aayna

Pratishtha Pandya

Editor

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&quot;Aao aao suno
apni bhavishyavani, suno apni aage ki kahani…&quot;  His voice, like a
mystical chant, echoes through the evening chaos of Juhu Beach. In the backdrop
of the setting sun on this vibrant beach in suburban Mumbai, Uday Kumar, about
27, is inviting people to come and listen to some soothsaying.



He is no self-made
astrologer, no chirologist, no tarot card reader with a rose-ringed parakeet. Instead,
he stands there with a small, roughly foot-long robot wrapped in decorative
lights, sitting on a mysterious black box that stands on a four feet tall
foldable table. “It’s called Jyotish Computer Live story,” he says, introducing
this reporter to the robot. 



The gizmo can analyse
the individual&#39;s vibrations, he explains, handing over the headphones connected
to the machine to an intrigued customer who has just walked up to him. After a
brief pause, a feminine voice, speaking in Hindi, will unravel secrets that the
future holds. All for 30 rupees.



Uday is the lone custodian of this technological
marvel he inherited from his uncle Ram Chandar, who had moved to Mumbai from his Gendha hamlet in Bihar some decades ago (and was known as Raju in the city).  Each time his uncle returned home he brought
with him stories of the city. “Chacha [paternal uncle] told us that he
has got an ajooba [a strange thing] that can tell the future, and
that is how he is making money. Many laughed and thought it was some joke. I
was fascinated!” recalls Uday. Raju had introduced his 11-year-old nephew to
the wonders of city life as well as that of the machine.

Uday’s parents, farmers toiling on a few bighas
of land they owned, often faced financial distress, which had pushed him to
leave his education after Class 4. The thought of helping the family
financially was also on his mind when he decided to leave his home in
Bihar’s Vaishali district and join his uncle  Raju in Mumbai city. He must have
been in his teens, he says. “Woh machine dekhna tha aur Mumbai bhi
[wanted to see the machine, and Mumbai as well]!&quot; Uday sounds nostalgic. 



The machine his uncle used was crafted by
artisans from Chennai and Kerala and made its debut in Mumbai in the late 90s,
recalls Uday. Raju chacha had met one of the artists and got the machine
on rent to get a hand in the business. 



“There were nearly 20-25 people in this work,”
says Uday. “A majority  them were from the southern states, a few were from
Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. They all had the same machine.” 



Like Raju they all roamed the city with the curious
apparatus and Juhu Beach held a special place for these itinerants. Uday tagged
along with his uncle as he wandered across the city. A fourth of his uncle’s
earnings went into paying the rent for the machine. The machine was too
expensive to buy, about Rs. 40,000, when Uday’s uncle Raju started his
business. But eventually he bought it.

Uday could never manage to learn the tricks of
making this robot despite many attempts. He inherited the robotic fortune-sayer
only when Raju passed away many years ago. Uday saw himself as carrying forward
the tradition that had once captivated his imagination.



A decade ago people paid Rs. 20 to get a
glimpse into destiny, a number that has inflated to Rs. 30 in the last four
years. The Covid-19 pandemic dealt a blow to his business. “Many people over
time left this trade,” Uday says. He is the only custodian of this mystical
relic after the pandemic. 



Uday too finds it difficult to survive on the
earnings he makes with the machine alone. His wife and five-year-old son live
in the village, and he hopes to get his son to study in Mumbai. He does various
odd jobs in the morning – clerical work and even selling pamphlets. He is
willing to do any job he can find. “When I don&#39;t get any morning job, I can
always stand here with this robot and make some money that I can send to my
family,” he says.      



Uday stands on the shores of Juhu beach from 4 o’clock
in the evening till midnight. In any other place he would get fined he fears,
and it would be difficult to carry the machine. 
Weekends are his best days for business when he gets to decode the
cosmic messages for many more eager seekers than usual. On those days his earnings
could be anywhere between Rs. 300 - 500. All of this amounts to Rs. 7,000-
10,000 a month.

“In the village, people believe in astrologers,
not machines so there is no good earning,” says Uday speaking of his failed
experiments to convince his fellow Biharis from the village of the mystical
power of the machine. Mumbai is the place for his business, he claims, although
the fortune-telling apparatus is more a source of amusement and is viewed skeptically
by people on the beach. 



“Some find it funny and laugh at it; some get
shocked. Recently a man was laughing in disbelief as his friend forced him to listen
to it but later, he was impressed. He told me that the robot knew that he was
going through some stomach issue and that he shouldn&#39;t worry much. He said that
he in fact had stomach issues. So, there are many like these that I have met,”
says Uday. “Those who wants to believe can do
so.”  



“The machine had never faltered,” claims Uday
with a sense of pride in this testament to its mysterious resilience. 



Has it ever stopped working? 



If it does there is a mechanic in town to fix the
wiring around, informs Uday.



&quot;I believe what it says. It gives me hope
to carry on with my work,&quot; Uday says. Though he is not quite reluctant to
reveal the future teller’s words about his own life. &quot;There is magic
inside and I still get fascinated by what the machine says about me. I will not
tell you to believe it. Hear it for yourself and decide,” he says with a laugh.

Robo says...

پیشین گوئی کرنے والا روبوٹ

రోబో భవిష్యవాణి...

ரோபோ சொல்வது என்னவென்றால்…

ਭਵਿੱਖ ਦੱਸਣ ਵਾਲ਼ਾ ਰੋਬੋਟ

ରୋବୋ କୁହେ...

റോബോ പറയുന്നു...

ರೋಬೊ ಮಾತಾಡುತ್ತಿದೆ…

રોબો કહે છે...

अगम के बात बतावत अनोखा जंतर

जुहू बीच पर भाग बांचे वाला रोबोट

রোবট উবাচ…

ৰব’য়ে কয় ভৱিষ্যতৰ কথা

भविष्य बताने वाला रोबोट

रोबो म्हणतो...

Mumbai

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Robo says...

Walking on Mumbai’s Juhu beach, you can’t help but notice Uday Kumar’s intriguing machine which promises to tell you your future, believe it or not

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